A jury is seated and the trial of a Mason City man charged with child endangerment resulting in death is getting underway. Thirty-year-old Kenneth Adams was arrested last December after an investigation by Mason City police and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.
Mason City police say they were called on the afternoon of October 27th to a report of a child not breathing. Officers discovered a child was unresponsive and was transported to Mercy Medical Center-North Iowa, where the child later died. The State Medical Examiner’s Office performed an autopsy and ruled 19-month-old Owen Adams’ death was a homicide.
A statement from the family after Kenneth Adams’ arrest said he called 9-1-1 immediately after he found Owen unresponsive while the child was napping, and they don’t believe that Owen’s death was the result of any overt action by Kenneth. Child endangerment resulting in death is felony charge that carries a maximum prison term of 50 years.
By Bob Fisher, KRIB, Mason City